Here's a link to their latest roundup of sales and discounts:
On my way in to work this morning I noticed several people stepping over a collapsed man in the middle of the pavement, then going on their merry way. Being the sort of person who bucks a trend, I knelt down and asked him if he was OK. He blinked once and no further response, so I made sure he was in the recovery position and an ambulance was duly called.
The crew arrived quickly, were very pleasant, diagnosed a potentially fatal heroin overdose and administered Narcan. They also said "thank you for saving him," which was very sweet of them.
It's very sad when someone is so troubled that they collapse from an overdose in the middle of a busy street. But it's even sadder when so many people step over someone who's possibly dying because they're frightened of getting involved, think a fellow human being is a piece of worthless trash, or are simply so selfish they just can't be bothered.
Anyway, I'm off for a lovely cuppa and will use it to raise a toast to lovely ambulance crews everywhere and everyone else who isn't afraid of getting their hands dirty from time to time. I also fervently hope I never have the misfortune to collapse in public.
Last night was a gym night. I was hoping that it might be OK, even if it was January - and even took the precaution of working a bit later than usual to avoid the influx of office drones and aerobics bunnies (and rack up a bit of flexi-time).
But oh no, it was not to be.
I got on an exercise bike to start warming up, and oh my god the thing that came and sat next to me. Imagine Beaker out of the Muppet Show (including identical haircut), but a 22-stone woman. This in itself is not really that strange, different strokes for different folks and all that..
The strange bit was that she was wearing Birkenstocks. Yes, that's right, open-toed, rigid-soled sandals.
She sat on her bike, put her feet on the pedals, took her feet off the pedals, got off the boke, got back on the bike, put her feet on the pedals, and so on and so on. She was there for about 10 minutes and didn't make the wheels go round once. There was an instructor less than a metre away but she didn't ask for help...
Meanwhile I had long moved on to doing my weights. Oddly enough, although every elliptical trainer and treadmill was rammed (fat loss), and every dumbell (meathead vanity) was in use, there was nobody on the core training weights. So I got through my Thursday workout faster than usual.
As I left, I noticed another woman working out wearing a jumper and shirt.
Roll on the middle of February.
I don't trust glossy magazines when they recomend toiletries and makeup, as they're constantly kowtowing to their sponsors. That's not an exaggeration - the last Brit mag that took a stand against it went bust in 3 months.
Anyway, here's one beauty report that I do rate: 2007's best-of-beauty roundup
It has a good mix of cheapies and posher things. Enjoy!
If you haven't signed up for this deal yet, then I can recommend it. Go to the website and sign up for 50% off all conveyor belt dishes at Yo!Sushi any time within the next 10 days.
They will then email you a voucher with your name on it. One voucher needed per person eating.
The offer excludes miso soup and any dishes made to order. And our tip is insist on them giving you a menu otherwise it's hard to tell what's in some of the dishes (not much good if, say, you were avoiding pork or another ingredient) - they will try to avoid giving you a menu if you've signed up for the deal.
I stuffed my face with 5 dishes and had unlimited green tea, and my bill was £8.25. If you haven't been there before, the dishes are colour coded according to price: if you're saving pennies go heavy on the cheaper blue or green-rimmed plates, and avoid the silver-grey ones.
The best thing about this place is that you can drag people there even if they're insisting on this ridiculous 'detoxing' lark that so many people do throughout January.
That lovefilm unlimited DVDs offer is fun. Over the weekend I did some good old fashioned home cooking and watched The Lives of Others, La Vie en Rose, and Zodiac.
Which kept me entertained and, crucially, out of the sales, the online shops and the pub. Result. The discs went back in the post on my way to work this morning, so hopefully there will be more on their way soon.
I'm really enjoying catching up on the films I missed last year, and once that's done there are plenty of classics and TV series to be getting through. What next, I wonder? Some comedy, I reckon.
Any recommendations, Voxers?
I made this up last night, and it was pretty tasty...
Ingredients:
2 tsps sunflower or corn oil
1 large onion, finely chopped
1 large potato, peeled and diced
1 head of broccoli, roughly chopped
1 can of flageolet beans, drained and rinsed
2 pints of vegetable stock
1 bunch of watercress (with stems removed)
Method:
Sweat the onion gently in the oil until softened, about 12 minutes. Then add potato and broccoli and sweat for another 3 minutes or so. Add stock and beans, then simmer for 20 minutes. Add watercress leaves right at the end of cooking. Then blitz with a blender to make a smooth soup, and season to taste with salt and black pepper.
Would serve 3 hungry people, or be a starter for 6.
Paul Smith online sale. enjoy.
I'm back at work today, wading through tons of pointless emails and looking forward to leaving early so I can join Wifey in Soho for a big pot of tea. Today seems to be a slow day, but things will undoubtedly be frantic again by next week so I'm enjoying the peace while it lasts.
The bargains are still rolling on:
Secret Sample Sale is on at the Truman Brewery from Fri 1st to Sun 3rd of Feb. Friday is members only so go to the website to register in advance if you'd like to attend. Designers include: Belstaff, Blumarine , Missoni, Celine, Serfontaine, Matthew Williamson, Catherine Malandrino, Junk Food, Stone Island, Tods, Balenciaga and more.
And some of us might be in for a nasty shock if we've overdone it with our credit cards recently - some cards have steep interest rate rises coming. Could you be affected?
Well, it's no secret, I've been feeling completely post-viral and blah for quite a while now. So in desperation I decided to have a bit of an overhaul, which includes not drinking for a month, going back to the gym as of tomorrow, getting the skin on my face deep cleaned this morning, and treating myself to some new clothes.
Went to TopShop last week to spend my £50-worth of competition vouchers, and really couldn't see a thing I liked, gave up and came home in a grump. But I went back this afternoon, started in the lower basement and looked at every single rail on the shop floor. Maybe it was the systematic approach, or perhaps they've brought in more stock, but I got lucky this time.
I found a really lovely green Viv Westwood-style check jacket, which ended up costing £25 after I'd used the vouchers, and also a chocolate-coloured short and curvy fitted jacket which was reduced to £15 in the sale. Then I was a bit naughty and bought a dark blue blazer for full price (£60), so now I'm properly skinted until payday.
But at least I'll look fabulous.
And while I'm staying at home broke yet again, I'll be enjoying a 3-month free trial of unlimited DVD rentals from lovefilm, as the postie accidentally delivered me a deluxe voucher. Plus I'll also be using up my 50 free song downloads from emusic.com, so it isn't all a disaster. Join either of these services, cancel any time, and they'll regularly try to woo you back with generous offers.
Tomorrow: current sales and latest credit card info.
